


Fall In

by stilljunhui (acyria)



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Wings, Fluff, Idol Wen Junhui, M/M, Producer Hong Jisoo, Soulmates, Wingfic, Wings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-14
Updated: 2018-07-04
Packaged: 2018-12-02 01:40:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,148
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11499090
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/acyria/pseuds/stilljunhui
Summary: People had wings. Casual sized wings that were usually not big enough to carry you, so you can’t exactly fly with it. It’s not exactly tangible so nobody can touch or feel it either; it’s just sort of there, attached to your back like an apparition. It showed how you feel, often times, emotions like sadness or joy could be felt through how the wings look or react to certain things. You could only see your own and your soulmate’s though, so it’s not like your vision is clouded by feathers wherever you look. The myths say it was there for that purpose exactly. To find your soulmate. Once you saw those wings, you were supposed toknow.And this is the story of how Hong Jisoo— ordinary producer with an ordinary life (because in the first place, if the wings could be used for flying instead of some stupid soulmate thing, he woulddefinitelybe flying)— finds out his soulmate just happens to be South Korea’s extravagantly rich, spoiled, and beloved pop idol: Wen Junhui.





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This idea was finally born after I read a soulmate-wings fic entitled The Winged Soul—it's Steve Rogers x Tony Stark / Captain America x Iron Man. It also gave me the ideas revolving how the wings worked in terms of colour, emotions, etc. So credits to the author for her story! It's a nice read if ya'll want to try. 

When Hong Jisoo was around 7 years old, he began to see something odd behind him. He knew it was a pair of wings, if all those animal books he had taught him anything, just large enough to take up the entire space on his back. He had ran excitedly to his parents, pointing and shouting about how he could now fly and whether he could jump off the roof, only to be met with amused smiles and chuckles. Also a warning never to end up on the roof. Jisoo’s first ever feeling of disappointment was when he was told the wings couldn’t be used for flying. The feeling went away quickly when his parents explained another use for it, though.

“Soulmate? What’s that?” Jisoo asked, trying to peer behind his parents to see if he could see their wings. He’s never seen their wings at all, which led to them explaining that the wings were something only he and his soulmate can see. 

“It’s somebody you’re meant to be with,” his father explained kindly, glancing at his mother with a knowing smile. “It’s a very magical kind of love.”

Jisoo blinked, “so you can see Mommy’s wings?”

“Yes, that’s right. We’re soulmates.”

“What do they look like?” 

“White,” the man said with a smile, as if he was describing the most beautiful thing in existence with just that one word. “With dark blue feathers just at the tips; that’s because my wings are blue. Likewise, my wings have white feathers, too.”

His mother chuckled, “I guess it’s a soulmate thing. Jisoo, what do your wings look like?”

At her question, Jisoo ran to the nearest mirror to look at his wings again. He found out he can’t touch it, too, and that it’s somehow see-through if he stares at it too intently. It was white—like Mommy’s!—with tips that looked like they were dipped in a swirl of pink and blue. Whoever his soulmate was, they must have really pretty wings to have two colours like that. That would make them easier to spot, right? Easier for him to meet his soulmate? He voiced out his observations and also his questions as he returned to where his parents were.

“It may not always be easy meeting your soulmate, Jisoo,” his father said, picking Jisoo up from the floor to settle the small child on his lap. “But no matter what, you will meet them. It’ll be love at first sight, and the most beautiful kind of all.”

“I can’t wait to meet my soulmate! Do you think they live here in America, too?”

“I’m sure they can’t wait to meet you, too, wherever they are.”

Jisoo turned to his mother, who had began to stroke his hair, “that also means that wherever they are, you will meet them eventually. It’s destiny, so don’t worry about it so much.”

Soulmates. Destiny. _Love._

He liked those words.

/

At 21 years old, Hong Jisoo was, put simply, a hopeless romantic. The type of guy to bring his guitar everywhere and sing love songs just because the sky was blue. As much as he loved singing and even writing such songs, Jisoo had never actually been in love yet. He blamed the wings on his back entirely—his soulmate hasn’t shown up his life. Some of his friends already met theirs and would tell him all sorts of stories about how wonderful it felt. Admittedly, he was a little jealous. It felt like everybody was falling in love except for him. Maybe he was more on hopeless.

It’s also been a few months since he had moved to South Korea. 

Jisoo moved with hopes of becoming a producer; he’s been doing well, so far. In his first month, he managed to land a small producing gig for a company that had only one artist. Unfortunately, that didn’t go all too well, because by the next month he was no longer needed since the group just didn’t click with the people and disbanded. Despite having no stable job after that one, he has met a few other aspiring producers around his age and became friends with them, as they all agreed to share possible job openings with one another.

The music scene in South Korea was hard. The style was different from what he was used to in America, but he could still adapt to that somewhat. Here in Korea, it was a very pop idol based country. The songs have to be catchy, it had to be able to match a choreography that everybody could remember, while still sounding great. The artists have to perform them well, too. They needed to be attractive and charming, and if they didn’t have any of those qualities, then it was hard to compete. 

He didn’t even want to _think_ about the bigger companies monopolizing the scene.

Still, it was another day without work. Another day without a soulmate. 

Jisoo stayed in his apartment that day, aimlessly flipping through the TV. He did this often, usually stopping at one of those drama shows so he could brush up on his Korean. It’s not that he wasn’t fluent in it—it’s just that sometimes his mind just switches back to English on impulse and he forgets that even English words have to be spoken in a Korean manner.  For today, he stopped at one of the music shows, instead.

“Have you heard the news, Jeonghan?” the female host asked her male co-host excitedly. 

“What news, Xiyeon?” The other MC—Jeonghan, apparently— faked a look of surprise. He definitely had the script on their cue cards, anyway, but Jisoo watched on regardless. 

Xiyeon squealed loudly, “South Korea’s Chinese Prince is releasing his music video _tonight_ for his comeback!”

“Wow, really? I wonder what concept  Prince Jun has for us this time.”

“Definitely something great, no doubt! He’s always—“

As she continued to talk about what _‘Prince Jun’_ had done, Jisoo tried his best to remember who this guy was in the first place. He has heard about him before, that was for sure, mentioned by a few of the companies he’s been at. All he knew was that Jun was some solo artist, who was attractive and charming, with great songs and a huge fanbase. Jisoo had never really had the chance to learn more about him; the Chinese singer had been on a break when he arrived in South Korea, so he hasn’t seen him anywhere, too.

“Judging by how excited you are, Xiyeon, I'm sure you've seen the concept photos. He’s aiming for something close and dear to the hearts of all Koreans. Maybe even the whole world!”

“His photos showed him wearing wings, right?” She asked, sounding truly excited to the point that her cue cards were long forgotten. Maybe this Jun person actually was a big deal. Jisoo was thinking about searching him up, but the current topic caught his interest. “He’s aiming for the classic soulmate concept.”

With a hand on her heart, Xiyeon sighed dramatically, “I wonder who’s the lucky girl who gets to see Prince Jun’s _actual_ wings?” 

“Well, with his concept, I bet he could be everybody’s soulmate now,” Jeonghan joked, also mentioning something about the amount of fangirls who would love to have him as their one true love. Their little skit ended soon after, as they began to announce the next few artists who were going to take the stage. By then, Jisoo had turned the TV off. 

Wherever he looked, it was always one of two things that bothered him. Either the lack of a stable job in the music industry, or the lack of a soulmate. He glanced behind him a bit, just enough to see his white wings once unfurled. For some reason, the news about Jun hit two birds with one stone in that department. Jisoo didn’t even know which one to mull over this time. Did he want a new job soon? One that provided him a good company and artist to work for? Would he rather just meet his soulmate already and forget all of life’s worries? _Hakuna Matata_ his way out of misery?

Jisoo sighed, the words of his parents ringing in his ears. _Don’t worry_ , they said. _Your soulmate will surely come_ , they said. He wanted to believe them, of course, but not everybody can meet their soulmate at the perfect time like they did. He has read stories and news articles about soulmates who meet when they’re already old and wrinkled. Some soulmates even end up with age gaps that span decades. Jisoo really didn’t want to think of the possibility that his soulmate was currently still a baby. Or a senior citizen. Nope, he was going to be positive about this.

By positive, he meant ignoring the idea completely for the sake of finding a job again.

He sent the usual text to his other producer friends—namely, Kwon Soonyoung and Choi Seungcheol—about whether they had found something for him, too. They did agree to help each other, after all. He would text Woozi about this too, but that guy actually landed a big break just a few weeks ago. Lee Jihoon, now known as Woozi, signed with a huge company with artists who were big names in the industry. Jisoo was happy for him, of course, even if it meant the boy was now perpetually busy and getting a reply from him was close to impossible. Maybe when none of the artists were having a comeback. Which means, maybe in another ten years or so.

His phone rang shortly after he sent his texts.

"Probably Soonyoung asking to eat out, though," Jisoo said to himself glumly, knowing how much the younger boy enjoyed meeting up and bonding over food. His wallet could take it, somewhat, but he still needed to cut down on the finer things in life. Surprisingly, it wasn't from Soonyoung at all. It wasn't even from Seungcheol, who was usually the one to reply in a heartbeat. He didn't even have time to sulk further about the fact that his friends didn't reply to him as he read the text Jihoon just sent him.

_Hey, lover boy, got some time on Saturday? I know another company who wants a producer for sappy songs. Just your thing._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starter chapter before things officially begin in August.


	2. Chapter 2

“You’re serious right now, right, Jihoon? You’re not joking?”

 _“Would I joke about something like this when I know you’ve been looking for a job for months now?”_ came Jihoon’s voice over the phone. Even without seeing the other boy, Jisoo was sure he had rolled his eyes. After receiving the text, Jisoo just _had_ to call him up to confirm things and also talk about it some more. He was met with a still-too-busy Jihoon gruffly telling him a few more details before ending it with a final, _“just make sure you look presentable.”_

Well, that was the end of _that_ conversation.

Jisoo was texted the address of the company he was meeting with soon after. It was the sister company of where Jihoon was working for. They needed more people to work on ballads and love songs for them as they tried to combat the industry of dance tracks and branch out to more audiences. He respected that.  At least now he had something to look forward to for the week, with it only being Thursday, after all. 

The younger boy had also mentioned that while they were looking for a different style, that didn’t mean an _old_ one. The sound of the song still had to be relatively current.

His thoughts flitted back to earlier’s music show. He hated to be so annoyed by it, but the fact that a lot of the song’s styles sounded vaguely similar didn’t sit well with him. Where was the originality nowadays? Still, that was the way the world worked—the music world, specifically—and Jisoo had to swallow his tiny, producer pride if he wanted a big break. Maybe when he’s more sought after, he can opt for different tunes. Diverse ones. Not having to fit a mold for it to become a popular song.

Speaking of earlier’s music show.

“Might as well search up the Prince,” Jisoo muttered to himself, pushing away his negative thoughts and feelings for now. It did him no good to grumble and complain, after all. He might as well put his time to good use and research a bit. The pop idol sensation seemed like a good place to start, anyway. He grabbed his laptop from a nearby desk and settled on his couch, listening to the whirring sounds of the device waking up for the next few minutes before he finally got started. 

The first article he came across was the most recent one, Jisoo noticed, since it mentioned the artist’s upcoming comeback. Large, bold words stated that he had stumbled upon a website that had the Prince’s—Jun, really, he didn’t need to actually call him Prince too—concept photos. Soulmate concept photos. With a heavy sigh, the brunette continued to scroll, reading up on a brief history of Jun’s career before his comeback, before finally stopping at the set of photos.

Well, at least now he knew why Jun had earned the title of Prince.

Still doesn’t mean he’ll actually refer to the idol as such, though.

The concept photos looked pretty thought-out, if Jisoo were to be honest. First, there was Jun standing in the middle of a lush, green forest, staring down at his feet. He was dressed in an all white ensemble that matched the pair of white wings he had edited onto his back—they had to be edited in, for others to see them, of course—which actually gave the illusion of wings quite well. If Jisoo looked closer, there might have even been hints of colour peeking through from behind for a good effect. Maybe to symbolize the coloured tips the fake, white wings clearly didn’t have.

Following that were a series of close-ups of the singer’s face, some staring into the camera while a few had him looking wistfully away; tan skin and chiseled jawline standing out immediately.

He was, without a doubt, handsome.

Distractingly so.

It was the last photo that made Jisoo do a bit of a double take. It featured only the back side of Jun, staring out into what looked like an endless sky that had words printed onto it: _can you see?_ This time it appeared that the wings on his back were changed into something else, a shocking pop of bright pink and blue compared to the pure white of the other photos, with only the tips remaining white. There was something odd about the photo that Jisoo couldn’t quite place. Something about the shade of pink and blue that was all too familiar… 

Scrolling back to the first photo, Jisoo realized it was only familiar because they were the colours he saw behind the original white wings. Just a good use of continuity, that’s all. Probably to tell a story or something, some kind of hint to get the fan theories going as to why those colours in particular—a good trick most companies seemed to use lately. Behind him, he felt his own wings flutter against his control, a soft rustle that did nothing to ease his thoughts.

Okay, maybe that was enough soulmate related searching for the day.

The rest of the day progressed pretty much the same as every other day in Jisoo’s book. He left the apartment for a quick bike around the town before settling back in before the sun began to set. Take-out from the nearby restaurant was also somewhat of a routine for him, even if he’s already been scolded by a few of his friends about his eating habits. Something about learning how to cook instead so it’ll be healthier. Who had the time, right?

If there was anything Jisoo would have gladly changed, it was the emptiness of the apartment upon coming back home.

Lonely.

Alone without a soulmate.

Somehow, everything seemed to point back to that one detail, even if he had just spent the day trying to escape it. Jun’s concept photos did nothing to help him, since for the day Jisoo had actually been distracted quite a bit. Every now and then the images would flash into his head again, reminding him of white wings and bright, colourful ones, too. It also, admittedly, reminded him of dark eyes and a pointed nose, matched with a soft smile. Hopefully Jun had the talent that matched his good looks and apparent fame. 

Somehow, Jisoo knew that he definitely did.

“Which reminds me,” the brunette noted, once again talking to himself. A habit of anybody who lived alone, maybe, not entirely a bad one. Just sad. “That music video should be out by now.”

He paused, thinking it over. Should he?

Without quite thinking about it, he brought his laptop over along with his take-out to the kitchen counter, where he usually ate. A few quick searches once again led him a music video that was just uploaded about half an hour ago. Jisoo prepared both his laptop and the food simultaneously, setting up containers of food as he began to load the video. Always good to have something to watch while he ate. Took away the loneliness, somehow, filling the space with sound as he finally pressed play.

Okay, so other than being extremely handsome, Jun had a good voice—he’ll give him that, but a part of Jisoo still said he had to hear it live to be _really_ sure—and apparently, the acting skills to match. The music video concept was more of a chase, if anything, involving Jun in different fantasy worlds looking for his soulmate. The lyrics suggested the same idea, mysterious yet romantic at the same time. It worked, in a way, even if his wings were a bit distracting at times. 

Jisoo didn’t see the point of the different pairs of wings in the music video at all. 

For the most part, he saw just the white ones, but there were also scenes where it looked like Jun was wearing two sets of wings instead. It looked awkward, oddly edited if anything, and highly unrealistic if Jisoo had to judge. Was this the company’s idea of involving the fans? Giving him  a bunch of different wings so he could cater to a lot of different colours? Why not just rainbow tips then if they wanted to work with colour? It felt a little like it was taking away the whole point of soulmates—of belonging to just _one_ person—for the sake of catering to the masses.

Eating next to his laptop might also have not been the best idea, though.

It took only a few minutes into the music video before his glass of water nearly spilled, causing Jisoo to panic and accidentally knock over a container that _did_ spill. Thankfully there was only a few pieces of kimbap inside, plus no other liquids. He didn’t think he had the capability to get his laptop fixed or even buy a new one at the rate his job hunt was going. Jisoo sighed, hitting pause on the music video as he went to clean up first. 

When Jisoo glanced back at the screen, he found that he paused at a good scene.

At least, it looked like a good one, anyway, with Jun’s side profile in full view. It was easier to admire the singer that way, not that it was hard at all. Plus, it also helped Jisoo scrutinize the wings further. He can't help but be a bit iffy about everything. From that angle, he could clearly see where the white wings connected to Jun’s body. It was opaque compared to how soulmate wings should actually be, but he let that slide since editing it was probably a chore. 

However, there was also the pink and blue set of wings—looking like it blended into the white one, sometimes passing through it—almost as if they were the real deal.

If they could edit that, why not the white one, too?

Why leave that one obviously fake, unless the colourful ones were—

_No._

Out loud, Jisoo also whispered, “no.”

He stared at the paused video, at the obviously fake white wings and the too-real pink ones. He stared, admittedly, at Jun’s face, too. Handsome even when paused at a random scene. He stared with a hint of shock, realization slapping him in the face. The familiarity of the bright pink and blue from the concept photos was not just because they were repeatedly used. They were familiar because he’s seen it all his life. Spreading his wings just enough for it to curl around his body, Jisoo stared at the colourful tips. 

Bright pink and blue.


	3. Chapter 3

To say that Hong Jisoo was in a state of shock was an understatement.

It was one thing to go from checking out Jun's songs to realizing the guy was his _soulmate_ —and no, he wasn't overjoyed by it, despite how active his wings were being behind him. Sure enough, Jisoo saw the same brightly coloured wings even outside of the soulmate music video. They were in every other video and photo of Jun he could find, thanks to the Internet. If the singer hadn't been on a break when he came to Korea, maybe he would have realized sooner. It would have been better compared to his mini meltdown in the middle of his apartment. 

Despite being a romantic, he was more on the hopeless part; Jisoo had been quite resigned to his fate of never meeting his soulmate before he even knew about Jun (as melodramatic as that sounded), but now for some reason, that feeling merely doubled. He finally found his soulmate: an unattainable, unbelievably handsome, popular artist with a large fanbase ready to tear him apart for stealing their _prince_. Jun probably won't even give Jisoo a second glance, soulmate or not, since he was just a regular guy after all. 

That is, if they ever meet to begin with.

Jisoo didn't sleep very well that night, dreams filled with pink wings and blue feathers, blue wings and pink feathers—white tips—and being ridiculously happy even if nothing has even happened yet. The sort of happiness he didn't allow himself to have when he woke up. It was too early to celebrate. He _did_ allow himself the small joy of finally knowing who his soulmate was, though; that their ages were similar (he was a year older, apparently, thanks Google), and at least in the same country. 

The next day had Jisoo hyperaware of everything around him. 

The thing with having a famous pop idol as a soulmate was that there was essentially no escape from it.

Jisoo learned this the hard way.

Specifically, how Jun's comeback ushered in a new wave of advertisements from the Chinese Prince. Maybe the commercials and banners have always been there, just unnoticed, or maybe they really did just begin popping out now that Jun’s had his comeback. Either way, Jisoo’s morning news watch had a preview of Jun’s music video before and after it. His walk to a good breakfast spot—a small effort to leave his apartment and hopefully not see any more of the videos—involved taking the train first, with the train station littered with signages of Jun’s face and wings. 

Walking around Hongdae’s busy streets in general had him wondering if he was hallucinating hearing the song, only to find that a small town square was playing it on full blast. 

There was a stage in the center of the area, with banners that had Jun’s name and face on it, but the wings an obvious fake white, hiding the real ones that only Jisoo could see. There were a few people working around the area, setting up speakers and lights and what not. A few feet in front of the stage, rows of fans were already seated, chattering animatedly about what Jisoo guessed must be Jun’s comeback. Some of them were wearing fake white wings, too. The type you could buy at random stores.

It took a few seconds before something clicked in Jisoo’s head.

Jun was holding some sort of fan meeting. _Here_. Where he was currently standing, basking in the ambience of the song and the fans and everything he’s been trying to ignore.

His first instinct was to bolt, run far away, hide inside some cafe, anything that took him away from being in the vicinity with his soulmate. He didn’t even know what time the event started, whether or not the amount of fans already present meant it was starting soon, before it was too late. The music stopped—which must have meant something only the fans understood because they began screaming excitedly—and there was an announcement that played, cutting through the loud shouts.

"Thank you to everyone who has been waiting—"

In the midst of the screams, Jisoo was able to make out one thing: the event was starting. 

He was standing farther away from the overall area at first, before eventually being pushed closer by the amount of people who began to crowd the area. Next thing he knew, he was in the middle of the crowd himself, unable to escape. Despite not being touched, his wings instinctively curled closer around him in an attempt to shield himself, before eventually perking up once Jun’s song began to play, fluttering against his control as he tried his best to will it to stay put. It took only a few seconds before Jun himself walked onto the stage, and Jisoo’s breath was taken away.

Jun was even better looking in person than in his photos, that was for sure. Although a part of Jisoo was wondering if maybe he was just biased, but no—judging by the louder screams that erupted, everybody else must have thought the same. The Chinese boy had a bright, charming smile on his face as he addressed the crowd, waving at them excitedly before proceeding to sing his comeback song. He had another song up next, one of the older ones that Jisoo hasn't heard of, while everybody either screamed or sang along. Jisoo remained one of the few boys in the crowd, staring up without a word. 

That was his soulmate right there on stage. 

His soulmate with his bright, colourful wings much wider than the fake ones he was wearing, making Jisoo stare at them instead of the white ones unknowingly. It seemed a bit unfair that he had to wear white ones instead of something like his actual wings. It looked far too plain on him. Jisoo likewise felt a bit insecure of his wings, but at least it had that pop of colour at the tips that he had Jun to thank for. Thankfully, his wings are fairly hidden in the crowd, made to curl around him further so that it won't draw attention—at least from Jun—and blended in with the multitude of fake wings around him.

"Thank you to everyone who decided to come by," Jun said, throwing the crowd a handsome smile. "I'm glad the weather today is good, too! It would have been a shame if it rained. Have you guys eaten yet?"

Mixed answers came from the crowd, which made Jun shake his head and adopt a worried look onto his face.

"Some of you haven't? I'd love to eat with you—"

Cue screaming fans.

"But unfortunately, I'm still looking for my soulmate. I wouldn't want them to be jealous, right?"

Cue even more screaming fans yelling that they're Jun's soulmate, along with Jisoo subtly scoffing. As if he'd ever be jealous about something as trivial as just eating together, really. Then again, it's not like Jun actually knew that. Or him, for that matter. The thought made him sigh, but he continued to watch Jun regardless. The idol easily controlled the crowd, asking questions and responding to the loud answers enthusiastically. While the fake wings were stiff behind him, his real ones fluttered excitedly, which made Jisoo smile despite himself. It showed how excited Jun really was about the whole thing, which was nice to know.

"I'm seeing someone with wings in the crowd," Jun suddenly said, making Jisoo's eyes widen in surprise and panic for a split second before he continued. "I'm seeing a lot of wings, actually! Are any of you my soulmate?"

Cue screams of affirmation from the girls and occasional guy who was actually wearing those fake wings.

Right. 

Jisoo breathed a sigh of relief when he realized Jun was referring to the multitude of fake wings and not actually seeing his own, which bristled slightly at the thought. There was relief, but also disappointment. _Maybe_ he had imagined Jun noticing him in the crowd and pinpointing him exactly, declaring him his soulmate, falling in love, all that sweet mushy stuff—but the singer did have an image and reputation to uphold. Plus, he may not even be actively searching for his soulmate, too. Just because he had the concept doesn't mean he took it _that_ seriously, anyway. It was just a fanservice thing, if anything.

The thought made Jisoo's heart drop a bit, but he waved it off immediately.

Jun grinned at the response of the crowd nonetheless, before giving an exaggerated pout (that may or may not have been extremely cute) and continuing his little spiel.

"Woudn't it be selfish if I give my love to just one person? How about I give it to everybody here?"

"That's not how soulmates work," Jisoo muttered to himself, thankfully drowned out by the crowd loudly agreeing with Jun. There were also those who whined about being the _"only one for Jun"_ and a few heated  _"love only me!"_ screams that he was able to pick up from the noise. Somehow he did relate to them, as sad and desprate as it may seem. He was Jun's actual soulmate, after all, if anybody had the right to say those claims it should have been him, right? Except his current position didn't really allow that of him either.

Jun motioned for the crowd to calm down and continued once there was a quite hush, "unfortunately, that's not how soulmates work. Who knows? One of you right now could be my real soulmate."

The fans swooned at the thought. Jisoo didn't want to make a scene, but his wings were getting harder and harder to control. He willed them to stay in put for the majority of the fanmeet, but they were clearly feeling his own rush of excitement and happiness, as if wanting to burst out and declare that _"hey! Your soulmate is right here!"_  His white wings were threatening to unfurl and flap around wildly, which would have been an obvious difference from the fake ones. He couldn't have that sort of distraction happening, even if it was only Jun who would see it— _especially_ because Jun was the only one who would see it. Who knew what would happen?

The event ended with Jun performing another song before leaving the stage. Even when the crowd dispersed, Jisoo stood there in a mild state of shock; the same one from last night, maybe, still not disappearing.

His soulmate was so close, yet so far.


	4. Chapter 4

If there was anything anybody needed to know about Wen Junhui, it was this: he didn't believe in soulmates. At least, he didn't believe that it was necessary to find his soulmate, since the wings on his back were enough proof that they existed. His parents had gotten married through an arranged marriage and it worked out fine, even two kids later and 24 years down the road. Neither had the urge to look for their real soulmate just like most of China's community, deciding it was more practical than a fantasy romance. At a young age, Junhui had figured he could do the same, although maybe not the arranged marriage part. Falling in love because he was actually in love with the person, wings be damned, felt a lot better. 

So when the company insisted on a soulmate concept, his initial response was to decline. 

"I'm not comfortable with it," Junhui said during the meeting, which was promptly ignored. He'll have to learn to be okay with it in the end since his audience was widely in South Korean, anyway. The company employee who sat beside him then nudged him with a teasing grin and joked about how he might find his real soulmate through all this, the lucky one who could see his real wings. Junhui could only wince in response and force out a smile. The last thing he needed were delusional fans who would insist on being his soulmate, although he knew he would only truly see his soulmate's wings after all and vice versa. Whoever his soulmate was, they would have seen his wings long ago, after all.

Perhaps, the last thing he _really_ needed was his soulmate popping out from out of nowhere, ruining his chances of being South Korea’s beloved idol for a long time. Relationships could either make or break an artist; he was supposed to cater to the masses, not just one person. What would that leave his fans, then? Especially on the off chance that his soulmate was in the same vicinity. What if they were a fan this whole time or someone who became one through this concept? Would they love their image of Prince Jun or for who Junhui was himself? It was small things like this that made Junhui want nothing to do with meeting his soulmate.

Despite the concept, it didn't change Junhui's love for what he did.

The stage and all its glory was still something he enjoyed, while fan service came easily to him regardless of the topic. It's not like his fans knew his stance on soulmates anyway and he made sure to keep it that way. It was relatively easy to act how the company wanted him to act, too. His princely status and image was now completed with the idea of having a princess—or prince, he wasn’t picky, although South Korea certainly was—to match. The thing was, his romantic image had only been further cemented with this concept, which they would probably milk for another comeback or two. 

"Who knows? One of you right now could be my real soulmate."

His first round of promotions for the album involved fan meetings at parks here and there. There was an expected huge turn out, as always, and the sight of fans wearing fake wings meant that everything was going as planned. They were drinking in every moment of Junhui being their soulmate, their one and only true prince, and lived in the fantasy that they were also his as he donned his own pair of fake wings. His own colourful ones oftened fluttered wildly whenever he wore the fake ones, as if protesting its existence. As easy as the fan service was, the pop idol admittedly felt a little bit of guilt brewing in his chest. What if his soulmate actually was out there? No—no, that didn't matter. 

At the end of the first fan meeting, his wings were more restless than before. 

Even during the event, it felt a lot like his wings wanted to escape from him and into the crowd.

The feeling wasn't that new to him, since performing in general gave him a sense of happiness and excitement like no other, but rarely were his wings so hard to tame even after a show. Junhui wasn't really the type to care about how his wings acted, after all technically only he could see it, but he was beginning to worry that the movement actually might attract attention. From his soulmate. Yeah, as if that was possible. He had received a few fanmails claiming to be his soulmate, but they all described his wings the same way—white like the fake ones were, only the tips changing to match the fan's own. He was famous; surely by now, his real soulmate would have heard of him and seen the wings? Sometimes, he wondered if maybe his soulmate also didn't want anything to do with him.

That was dangerous territory that Junhui never allowed himself to dwell in for too long.

Things continued as normal after his initial first few days of worry and slight overthinking. His music video had reached two million views within the first day, which meant he had to think up some gimmick that he could release as a thank you. He would leave it to the company, but Junhui liked knowing what he did and taking part in the planning, regardless of whether they didn't always listen to his opinions. Along with that, he had his music shows to go to, all without soulmate incident. There was also the upcoming company meeting again about his follow up song and what he would do then. Something with a romantic route as always, maybe even a ballad, but they'd need a more skilled producer for that.

It was a Saturday morning when everything Junhui had been worrying about came true. The moment he entered the company's office room, he was met with not just his favourite (read: not) group of company employees, but a very obvious pair of bright white wings behind someone who was faced away from him. At first, Junhui almost dismissed it as just one of his team members bringing in the fake wings even to a meeting, which would have been odd, but not unlikely if they wanted to boost his excitement. The realization that it wasn't fake, but rather very, very, _very_ real came like a slap in the face when he realized the wing's tips looked dipped in pink and blue.

It didn't help that when the figure turned around, it was a boy with reddish brown hair and soft features, glancing at him without a hint of surprise before looking away. 

Wen Junhui hated his soulmate immediately.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so first of all, as with a lot of my chaptered stories: my apologies for taking a long time to update. It's been almost a year since I thought up what would be happening for Fall In and wondered about two possible routes I wanted this to go. Well, after months of forgetting about it, working on other stuff, and going back to being clueless about what would happen (yup, the honest facts) I'm here to announce that with this update comes my final decisions on how the fic would go. It starts with this somewhat bonus chapter of Junhui's POV! I'll have a few of these here and there so keep an eye out if you want more Junhui, but most of the story will still be following Jisoo's POV. That being said, I hope this chapter was worth the long wait and I'll do my best to provide more frequent updates from now on (or at least, it won't take me this long again). Please tell me what ya'll think about this chapter and the overall idea of adding Junhui's POV here and there. Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

There were a thousand and one ways Jisoo imagined his first meeting with his soulmate would go. 

It was something he had always imagined, of course, and it always went a bunch of different ways. Meeting at the park? Being classmates in school? A random chance encounter was usually his first bet, but there was also the chance that they would be introduced by a friend. A lot, if not all, of his scenarios ended up great; happily ever after and all that. That was just how soulmates worked, right? There were a few more negative aspects—like the age gaps, or never meeting them, or something else that would draw them apart. 

This was all before he actually knew who his soulmate was. Now that he knew his soulmate happened to be a pop idol beloved by many, well; his scenarios went a bit differently. He was a little more hesitant to get the relationship he had longed for. Still, he thought about how things would go if Jun were ever to spot him in a crowd and call him out. Maybe he’ll attend an actual concert next time around. Then again, could the idol even have a relationship? Even more so a boyfriend?

There were a lot of ways, but this wasn't one of them.

Standing in the middle of a meeting room, chatting up some other producers and managers and general staff. Jisoo had known what to expect from the moment he entered the building. Posters of Jun from his previous concepts and his current one were plastered all over the walls, especially in the room they were currently in. He was told immediately that he’d be working with the Chinese boy himself and not any of the company’s other artists.

All he could do then was nod and wait.

The door opened a little while later. Seeing the vibrant coloured wings, Jisoo couldn't help but look away.

That may have been where it all went wrong. He didn't mean to ignore Jun, especially since he was there to produce a new song for the idol after all. It's just that he really has dreamt about meeting his soulmate for most of his life. He didn't want to mess it up. He was nervous. There was definitely a hint of recognition in Jun's eyes when Jisoo had glanced at him though. He saw the wings. He should know as well. There was a sudden pounding in Jisoo's chest as he began to take it all in. This was finally happening.

His soulmate was right there.

"Can we get this over with?" Jun asked, easily walking past where Jisoo had been standing talking with one of the staff. The singer took a seat at the farther end of the table. When Jisoo had finally looked at him again, the Chinese boy wasn't looking his way. Instead, Jun maintained an annoyed look on his features, different from the sweet image he had shown on stage, as he spoke again. "I have a music show to attend tonight and I have to get to the salon soon, right?”

“Yes, but it won't take too long," one of his managers assured him. The man gestured towards Jisoo, who took it as his cue to pay more attention to anybody other than Jun. 

"This is the new producer who's going to work with you for your follow up song."

Jisoo gave his best smile, "hi, my name is Hong Jisoo. It's a pleasure to be working with you, Jun."

"I wish I could say the same."

The brunette froze at the obvious iciness in his tone. Had he really done something wrong? They were soulmates, right? Was it possible that Jun didn't know that, or did he know and just didn't care? Rather it would seem like he hated the idea. Even the other staff members in the room looked rather surprised at the sudden hostility, but it didn't look like Jun minded what the others thought. The latter rolled his eyes at the sudden silence, gesturing towards the empty chair across him. 

"Sit down, I don't have all day. Let’s get this over with.” 

"Right," Jisoo replied dumbly, fumbling with the chair a bit before taking a seat. He could feel his wings fluttering behind him, nervous and confused all at once. When he took in Jun's wings a little more, it was clear that the other boy had his guard up. His wings were very nearly wrapped around his body, almost as if shielding him away from being seen. Staring at the wings might have been yet another wrong move on his part, as he ended up meeting Jun's eyes. 

The black haired boy narrowed his eyes, wings bristling evidently, but didn't say anything else as the staff head began to speak.

It wasn't anything Jisoo didn't already know. He was there because the company wanted him to produce a love song for Jun to sing, something that would go well with his recent soulmate concept and hopefully sell more, too. He had only a few weeks to come up with it, that way there can be adjustments made and also so the idol can be given ample time to record and practice. Most of the people there bounced ideas off each other for Jun's next gimmick video, too. Still, the singer himself remained silent. 

Jisoo on the other hand would flit between stealing glances at the Chinese boy—Jun was never once looking back at him—and responding to the questions and concerns thrown his way. He had wondered if all meetings went like this, where Jun didn’t really pitch in with what he had to do, or if it was because of his presence. Maybe he didn’t like the whole soulmate concept after all? Maybe Jisoo just caught him on a bad day?

It remained that way for most of the meeting, until Jun stood up out of the blue. 

"Can I be left alone to discuss with the new producer?" He asked calmly, but it was still clear he wasn’t accepting no as an answer. "I want to give my two cents in without everybody else listening in. We'll let you know what we decide on after and for your approval. I work better with less people, you know that.” 

Jun smiled sweetly after that, and for a moment Jisoo was almost fooled by the positive outlook. That was, until the staff members obediently left the room for a bit, nodding in agreement. It took a little longer for his managers to agree to going out too, but Jun insisted that he preferred working one on one with the producer for his new song. It would ensure a better result. When they were all out, Jisoo figured it was the best time to point out the elephant in the room, except Jun beat him to it. 

"I know we're soulmates," Jun said, tone uncaring as he took a seat again, the sweet smile from earlier gone in a second. "But please, don't expect anything from this. I would like to keep whatever we have strictly professional." 

Jisoo blinked, "what?"

"Did you not hear me?" The other boy snapped, wings unfurling behind him, stretching out to its full length. It was larger than Jisoo's wing span, probably because he was taller, too. The blinding pink and blue suddenly reminded Jisoo of how animals in the wild could tell danger based on bright colours. It always meant to stay away. Jun must have caught the sudden movement too, as he quickly return his wings by his side.

"If you're expecting some kind of fairytale love story, you're not getting it,” he added, more calmly this time around. “Not from me. It’s either strictly professional as we discuss new songs or you walk out that door right now, telling them you give up.”

“I was called here for the job,” Jisoo found himself replying, voice equally stern despite the sudden ache in his chest. He was never one to back down, anyway. “I’m _staying_ for the job.”

The Chinese boy nodded curtly at that, seemingly pacified by his answer.

“Good. I’ll leave everything up to you then. Just run through ideas with one of my managers, tell them I agree to whatever you say. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to mess this up for you either so you’ll do a _splendid_ job,” Jun said with a small smirk as he stood up once more and began walking towards the door. He was just about to walk past Jisoo when the latter couldn’t help but catch his wrist, causing the raven haired boy to look back in shock. The shock on his features quickly morphed into anger.

“What do _you_ think you’re—“

Jisoo cut him off, “can I at least why? I think I deserve an explanation.”

The other boy easily yanked his arm away, levelling Jisoo with a defiant stare and for a moment the older boy wondered if Jun would say that he didn’t deserve anything, before the mocking smirk returned as the singer scoffed, “it’s simple, really. I’m South Korea’s beloved prince. You’re you. Do the math, Hong Jisoo. Not all soulmates end up together, anyway. Don’t touch me again.”

He was out the door before Jisoo could even fully take his reply in. His wings were beating behind him frantically, as if telling him to follow after his soulmate, but his feet remained planted on the ground. What was he supposed to do anyway when he was basically rejected without even being given the chance to do anything? Jun had made it perfectly clear he wanted nothing to do with Jisoo, which just didn’t make any sense. They were soulmates. Weren’t they supposed to fall in love?

Only those who never met each other didn’t end up with each other, right? At least, all the stories he’s heard about soulmates were good ones. They couldn’t even be friends. Jun made it clear that they were from two different worlds, as if Jisoo didn’t feel that enough when he first found out. Now the feeling was even stronger. Suddenly, he wasn’t so sure what was worse.

Not knowing who his soulmate was, or knowing that his soulmate hated him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My laptop broke a month ago, but it's all good now! And with that comes this new chapter that I hope you all enjoyed. I don't usually write Junhui as this kind of character (such a sweet lil bub), but for plot's sake I figured it fit best. As always, thank you for reading and for being patient with me and my irregular updates ♡


	6. Chapter 6

There was a very clear chill in the air despite the bright sun. Residents of South Korea knew that with the coming months that would soon lead to December, it was simply the beginning of the colder season until winter hits completely. For Hong Jisoo, his mind couldn’t help but think that this sort of scenario reminded him a bit too much of his current situation. There was the bright sun—his soulmate finally appearing, the fact that they met at all—yet there was also the obvious cold that made him wonder whether the sun was actually there or not.

It took a while before the reality of his situation really sunk in. It's only been over a week since he finally met his soulmate in person. He considered it a wild ride from start to finish; that’s if it really was the end at all, Jisoo wasn’t so sure yet. Still, Jun had made it pretty clear that he had no intention of taking the idea of soulmates seriously. To make matters worse, it seemed like he was also explicitly against the idea of Jisoo as a soulmate. They had just met, it really shouldn’t have bothered the producer as much, but of course it did.

“So what you’re saying is,” Seungcheol began, eyes wide in disbelief. “Your soulmate _hates_ you?”

Jisoo groaned, nodded, and took another bite of his burger to prevent himself from saying anything further. A few days after meeting Jun, Soonyoung had eventually asked their little group to meet up over lunch, blissfully unaware of what Jisoo was going through. Jihoon was predictably busy and not present, leaving it just the three of them as usual. Normally, Jisoo wasn’t the type to explicitly share about his life, but these were his trusted friends after all. They both knew of his soulmate woes, too.

“I’m not sure if that’s more surprising than the fact that your soulmate is Jun, of all people,” Soonyoung commented soon after.

“I feel the same way,” the brunette answered back solemnly, thoughts involuntarily drifting towards the way Jun’s wings would flap behind him and just how ethereal everything looked, before zeroing back in to the annoyed look on his face whenever he had to interact with Jisoo. He really thought he’d be better than this when it came to his soulmate. Granted, he never really imagined such a situation, but he always figured soulmates just meant happy endings and a sweet relationship. 

As if reading his mind, Seungcheol huffed, “I didn’t even know it was possible for soulmates not to work out.”

“Isn’t Jun promoting a soulmate concept right now?” Soonyoung suddenly asked before Jisoo could respond to the previous statement. The latter frowned, but nodded nonetheless, which earned an exagerrated gasp. “That’s some irony there, Jisoo.”

“Tell me about it,” the other boy muttered.

The topic died down eventually, or at least, Jisoo's two companions realized it might have been a touchy subject even if the brunette had voluntarily talked about it. In a way, they weren't exactly wrong; he was more than upset about the situation. Hearing it come from other people just made Jisoo feel like it was being constantly shoved in his face that his soulmate rejected him. At the same time, he just wanted to talk about it forever. It was something he could go on for days. He already could back when things were positive and he was blissfully unaware of how Jun was, to the point that Seungcheol would jokingly tell him to shut up about soulmates. 

They ended up talking about more random things like new drama shows, which songs are nice nowadays, which restaurants to eat at—for Jisoo, it became a pleasant distraction, even just for the few hours they were together. Eventually, Soonyoung had to rush back home, leaving Seungcheol and Jisoo to discuss whatever topic they were at as they left the restaurant. They lived in fairly the same area and so decided to take the bus back home together. Jisoo could tell that Seungcheol had a slightly awkward air around him, dodging topics like love and even the music industry, but the other man clearly had something he wanted to talk about.

"Cheol, it's not like it's a forbidden topic now," Jisoo said eventually as they took their seats on board the bus, unable to take the fidgety eyes. "I told you guys for a reason."

Visibly relaxing into his seat, Seungcheol sighed, "sorry, it's just weird. I just didn't imagine you in a situation like this."

"It's fine, it's not like it's your fault or anything."

"When are you seeing him again?" the dark haired boy asked.

If he were being honest, Jisoo didn't even know. He dropped by the office building immediately the day after their initial meeting, but the idol was nowhere to be found. Sometimes Jun was there, sometimes he wasn't, and they never interacted for more than a few minutes at most. He wasn't sure who to ask regarding Jun's schedule or if he even should, considering how Jun might just make things hell for him should they be put in the same room again. Still, the obvious hostility disappeared whenever they were around staff members now, with Jun claiming that he had confidence that Jisoo was going to produce a good song—he was only worried the first time they met, that's all. Everybody else seemed to believe it.

He was a pretty good actor too, apparently.

The brunette shrugged, "no idea. I'm not really working _with_ him at this point, just for him, I guess."

"Didn't he give you free reign over his next song though? What did you have in mind?"

"Well, it's not free reign exactly," Jisoo started. "It's still somewhat related to his current concept, so it's still going to be romantic and about love and all that. That's why Jihoon suggested me."

He couldn't help but scoff now at yet another ironic factor; Jihoon had only contacted him since the other boy knew he was in love with the idea of love; for obvious reasons, soulmates were just his _thing_. Who would have thought it'll end up leading to actually meeting his soulmate and realizing it's never gonna work out, though? Jisoo sighed heavily at the thought of this, which earned a concerned look from Seungcheol who eventually prompted those thoughts from out of Jisoo as he listened attentively to the way Jisoo just had to rant.

"What if it _does_ work out though?" Seungcheol asked once Jisoo finished speaking. "You're in the same vicinity now. You can actually do something about it."

"Should I?" the other boy asked, more as a question to himself. 

There were a lot of things he could do. He could ignore Jun's warnings and aim for a relationship regardless, hope and pray that Jun's ice cold heart ends up melting, and eventually get the Chinese boy to date him. Jisoo would like to think the fact that he was a romantic at heart would make caring for his soulmate a lot easier. That could also always mean that Jun will eventually open his eyes to how much of a great guy Jisoo is, accept being soulmates, and thus they're back to getting their happily ever after. It wasn't exactly forcing Jun to like him. Actually, Jisoo wasn't quite sure he liked the other boy as well, apart from the general knowledge that he _should_ since they're soulmates.

Was that bad?

Shouldn't he also get to know Jun first before Jisoo can say that he actually liked—even more so, loved—him?

He voiced this question out to Seungcheol, who didn't know what to say, either.

The day after that was definitely colder than the previous days. It wasn't exactly a winter chill just yet, since it was barely even the start of October, but the shift in the weather became more apparent. Jisoo had shuffled around his apartment in pajamas for most of the morning when he got a text from the company asking him to come over, which prompted him to get changed. He wouldn't consider himself a vain guy, but nowadays whenever he had to end up going to the company building, he couldn't help but try and dress a little better than usual. Producers didn't have to be flashy by any means, but it was where his soulmate could be, after all.

His attention to style paid off that day as he entered the same meeting room from the previous week to find most of the same people in the room.

Most important of all, Jun himself, seated by the head of the table.

There was no way Jun didn't see him, but the idol was definitely making it a point not to look towards Jisoo's general direction. He couldn't have missed the bright, white wings that couldn't help but flutter beyond Jisoo's control, practically screaming for his soulmate to notice them. Jun's own remained tightly pressed towards his back and his sides, which was beginning to look like their normal state whenever the boy wasn't on stage. Almost as if he just wanted to shield himself. In this case, maybe even shield himself from Jisoo. Just for the sake of it, Jisoo sat significantly farther away from Jun, while also making sure he would still be visible.

"Well, what's the progress on the song?" 

Jisoo glanced towards Jun to ask if he should be the one to answer, but of course, the other still wasn't looking at him. It was going to be another one of _those_ days then.

The staff member turned back and forth between the two, before finally resting her sights on Jisoo, raising her brows slightly.

"Jisoo?"

"I have a few drafts and samples ready," the brunette answered, digging into his shoulder bag for the CDs and laying some of them out on the table. He may have lost some of his romantic inspiration, but they were still there, and he was still going to do a good job with this regardless. "I wasn't sure which one is the best yet. I was going to have Jun listen to see what he'd prefer, but I didn't have a way to reach him."

At the mention of his name, Jun instinctively turned towards the producer. Their eyes met before Jun can pretend that he didn't, while Jisoo met his already annoyed gaze with a leveled one of his own, locking them. 

The older of the two smiled, "can you listen to them now?"

"What if I don't like any of them?" Jun asked without missing a beat, causing a wave of unease to settle in the room. Honestly, Jisoo didn't even know why he was acting up again at this point, but he wasn't going to let his work go to waste. Jun seemed perpetually torn between accepting that they were working together now and truly letting Jisoo do whatever he wanted like the idol had originally said, and trying his best to be as hard to work with as possible so that either Jisoo left or got fired. The brunette wasn't allowing that to happen.

He also had to admit that the more he had to deal with Jun's bratty, rude behavior, Jisoo himself was also torn.

His soulmate wasn't even a likeable person. Had he really expected a love story with someone like Jun? Would that have made him blinded by love? Slowly, the fantasy that they were a match made in heaven was being stripped away with each interaction he had with Jun. Even the lack of interaction, especially positive ones, was a very telling feature. Is this how this ends, then? They just stay enemies forever? He tried to consider this future for a moment, but the moment he did, it left an almost literal ache in his heart. Deep inside, he still knew that soulmates just couldn't be ignored. Try as he might, he'll never truly dislike Jun. 

"We still have to try," Jisoo answered after a pause. "It's the only way we can figure out where to go from here."

The double meaning in his answer wasn't lost on the artist, whose eyes widened in surprise for a moment before they narrowed into a near glare, immediately turning away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> School started a few days after I updated last, which meant I was pretty busy again, but I had a free day today so here I am! This update, shockingly, did not take me more than a month!!! I saw someone rec this fic on Twitter (hmu @stilljunhui, kinda inactive now cuz of school tho) and described it as "updates once in a blue moon" and ya'll, that applies to everything chaptered I have. Woops. Thanks for the luv regardless! This chapter is longer than the previous, but not a lot happens since it's more of a filler chapter again because I get into more Junshua interactions, so look out for that! Also, if this fic were to have side pairs and all, who would you guys want to see? 

**Author's Note:**

> If you like my work and would like to support me, please consider buying me coffee! https://ko-fi.com/stilljunhui


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